Carpet stretcher



Aug. 12, 1952 J. c. OWENS 2,606,743

CARPET STRETCHER 5 Sheets-Sheet l Filed May 1C, 1948 lb, L 111/( l lll/1111111111111. k mm vll/f1 mv/l//l/ 4 11111'11111111111111111111'1411111111 4 l willi/111111111111114lll/,1111114L' 111/11,

INVENT.

A rroewfy Al1g 12, 1952 J. c. OWENS v 2,606,743

CARPET STRETCHER Filed May 1o, 194s 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 d? JNVENTOR. Y

M4555 6. 0mm/s A fraz/ver Aug- 12, 1952 l J. c. owENJs 2,606,743

I CARPET STRETCHER Filed May 10, 1948 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Trae/VE( 5 sheets-sheet 4 INVENTOR. A1555 C. @wf/v5 Afro/@Mfr J C OWENS CARPET STRETCHER Aug. 12, 1952 Flled May l0, 1948 Aug. 12, 1952 1 OWENS 2,606,743

CARPET STRETCHER Filed May lo', 194s 5 sheets-sheet 5 Yi Y . QSE Q :ly v

, INVEN TOR.

Jessi 6. wfA/J Patented Aug. 12, 1952 'r lortica CARPET STRETCHER Jesse C. Owens, Los Angeles, Calif.

Application May 10, 1943, Serial No. 26,220

(Cl. 25d-62) 18 Claims. 1

This invention relates tocarpet stretchers, and more particularly to improvements in carpet stretchers of `the typehaving a prong-bearing head adapted to grip a carpet by insertion therein of a number of prongs, and having a telescopic body adapted to hold said head at ar selected distance' from a point of abutment, such as a Wall or baseboard, and having leverage mechanism for moving said head in further extension of said body for stretching the carpet.

In laying a carpet it is common practice to anchor one edge ofthe carpet along one wall of a room by tacking ,down that edge and then stretching the carpet towards the opposite Wall, using a carpet stretcher both for stretching the` carpet and for holding it in stretched position while it is being tacked or cemented along its other edges. This, of course, places a strain upon the anchoring tacks along the first wall which are generally, and particularly in the case of cement or other hard floors, held in What is knownv as a tacking strip--that is, a special strip of tackretaining materiai, laid along the,v base of the first Wall. Not uncommonly, 'when the carpet stretcher merely abuts the Wall adjacent to them` tacking strip, the carpet may be pulled from thetacks o1- the tacks may be pulled from the tacking strip, as the leverage mechanism on a stretcher of the type described is capable of exerting a very considerable pull on the carpet.

Furthermore, when the carpet stretcher is extended telescopically so that its telescoping members no longer provide mutual support, the compressive force exerted by the leverage mechanism upon the telescoping members may cause them to buckle or bend, so that they are not only less ecient in their stretching function but become distorted so that they cannot telescope into each other again. The buckling may more easily occur if the telescoping members are weakened structurally by means employed for holding the members in adjusted relative position. Yet it is highly desirable to have such holding means readily accessible and easily releasable as Well as efficient in their holding capacity. Of course, the three possibilities of the carpet stretcher letting go of the carpet, the carpet beingpulled from the tacking strip, and the telescoping members buckling, are all mutually counter-active, the occurrence of one obviating the likelihood of the occurrence of the others, but obviously any of them is undesirable.

It is therefor an object of this invention to provide a carpet stretcher which will grip the carpet rmlv at the anchored portion Well as at the advancing portion, which has simple and efficient means for releasably connecting the telescoping members of the body of the stretcher, and which includes means for preventing-the telescopic body from buckling in either vertical or horizontal planes. Y

A further object of the invention isto provide a carpet stretcher having carpet gripping means at its anchored end adaptedvto-cooperate with a tacking strip in holding that end of the carpet firmly in place.

Another object of the invention is to provide carpet-gripping means for the anchored end of a carpet stretcher Which cooperate with the head of the stretcher normally placed in abutment with a Wall surface in holding the stretcher posited With respect to the wall and to the carpet, and which form a detachable portion of the stretcher, dispensable when not needed and adapted to be attachedto old-fashioned stretchers not provided With such means. v

Still another object of the invention is to provide simplified and readily accessible means for ladjusting the eiective length of the carpet-gripping prongs of a carpet stretcher so as to accommodate the stretcher to use with carpets of diverse thicknesses, and to prevent damage to the iloor and to the carpet pads ordinarily laid under carpets.

Another object of the invention is to provide a carpet stretcher suitable for use Where no wall or other vertical surface is available for abutment of the stretcher, as for example Where the anchored end of the carpet is adjacent to a hearth or door sill or in lengthy corridors or rooms cf greater extent than the telescoping capacity of the stretcher.

A further object of the invention is to provide a carpet stretcher'having telescoping members of a construction which permits more ready access to the means for releasably holding said members in selected telescopic formation.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide means for'preventing buckling ofv said telescoping members, which maybe posited at selected positions on said members to afford protection at thevveakest point or at the point of greatest strain. I

Another object ofthe invention is to provide means for preventing buckling of said telescopic members, which serve also Aas means for holding a carpet in extending position While the leveractuated stretching vhead is being adjusted for initial or for further stretching operations.

The invention possesses other objects and `features of advantage, some of which, with the foregoing, Will be set forth in the following description of the preferred forms of my invention which are illustrated in the drawings accompanying and forming part of the specification. It is to be understood that I do not limit myself to the showing made by the said drawings and description, as I may adopt variations of the preferred forms within the scope of my invention as set forth in the claims.

Referring to the drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a carpet stretcher embodying the principles of the present invention.

Figure 2 is a top plan view on an enlarged scale of the wall-abutting head of the carpet stretcher shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a vertical sectional view of the wallabutting head of the carpet stretcher, the plane of section being indicated by the line 3-3 of Figure 2, with the direction of view as indicated.

Figure 4 is a side elevational View on a further enlarged scale of Ythewall-abutting head of the carpet stretcher taken from the view point indicated by the line 4-4 of Figure 2.

Figure 5 is a fragmentary sectional view illustrating one of the rollers on the wall-abutting head, the plane of section being indicated by the line 5-5 of Figure 2.

Figure 6 is a fragmentary sectional view on a still further enlarged scale, showing the means for adjustably receiving a guard plate to a wallabutting head, the plane of section being indicated by the line 6-6 of Figure 3.

Figure 7 is an exploded view in perspective of a wall-abutting head showing the constituent parts and illustrating the manner of their assembly.

Figure 8 is a perspective View of a wall-abutting head according to the present invention, assembled upon a carpet stretcher having a conventional non-prong carrying head.

Figure 9 is a perspective view from below of the lever-actuated prong-carrying head of my carpet stretcher.

Figure 1'0 is a perspective view of the supporting and reinforcing prong-carrying member of my carpet stretcher, commonly called a staytacker.

Figure 11 is a transverse vertical sectional view of the stay-tacker shown in Figure 10, the plane of section being indicated by the line II--H of Figure 10, with the direction of view as indicated.

Figure 12 is 'a fragmentary perspective View from below of one end of the stay-tacker shown in Figure 10.

Figure 13 is a detailed fragmentary sectional view of the clamping mechanism for securing the stay-tacker to a carpet stretcher, with the mechanism in its unclamped position being shown in broken lines.

Figure 14 is a perspective view of an auxiliary saddle used to t the stay-tacker to the smaller, or interior element of a telescopically extensible carpet stretcher.

Figure 15 is a perspective fragmentary view of a modified form of the telescopically extensible member of my carpet stretcher.

Figure 16 is a. longitudinal vertical sectional view of the form of telescopically extensible member shown in Figure 15.

Figure 17 is a transverse vertical sectional view showing the locking mechanism illustrated in Figures 15 and 16 in locked position, the plane of section being indicated by the line ll-I'I of Figure 16.

Figure 18 is a view similar to Figure 17, showing the locking mechanism in unlocked position.

Figure 19 is a top plan View of a modified form of locking mechanism, the telescopic elements locked thereby being shown partly in plan and partly in horizontal section.

Figure 20 is a perspective view of a modified form of my carpet stretcher.

Figure 21 is a longitudinal-Verticall sectional view of the carpet stretcher shown in Figure 20.

Figure 22 is a horizontal sectional view of the prong-carrying head shown in Figures 20 and 21, the plane of section being indicated by the line 22-22 of Figure 21.

Figure 23 is a fragmentary vertical sectional View on an enlarged scale showing the guard plate adjusting mechanism, the plane of section being indicated by the line 23--23 of Figure 21.

Specifically describing the preferred embodiment of my invention, as illustrated in Figures 1 to 13, my improved-carpet stretcher comprises an elongated member 26,- hereinafter called the pole, which carries at oneend a head 21 adapted to abut against a resistance such as a wall, as indicated at 28 in Figure-f1, and on the other end a prong-carrying head 29 for gripping a carpet 30. For the purposev of holding the carpet when the head 29 is disengaged therefrom and for preventing the pole 26 from buckling under the compressive strains to which it may be subjected, a prong-carrying member 3l, usually termed the stay-tacker, may be secured to the pole 26.

The pole 26 may b e formed of two or more elements arranged to slide' one within another to permit telescopic extension of the pole, as for example an 'outer tube 33 and an inner tube 311. The tubes 33 and 34 are provided with holes 35, spaced at suitable intervals, and when holes of the inner tube are in register with holes of the outer tube at any selected degree of extension of the pole, the tubes may be temporarily locked in such a position by a pin or pins 3G, which may be inserted in the holes from the outside or may be spring-actuated and mounted within the inner tube 34 as shown in U. S. Patent 2,358,436 to J. D. Bartlow.

In carpet stretchers heretofore in use, a wallabutting head has generally been employed which consists of a rectangular block, as shown at 38 in Figure 8, mounted pivotally on a short vertical bearing 39 on the pole 26 and usually provided with casters 4U to facilitate moving the carpet stretcher from one location to another. To permit my improved head 2l to be used in connection with heretofore existing carpet stretchers, the head 2l is preferably formed of a channel shaped housing 4 I, adapted to be slipped over the block 38 and somewhat wider than the block 3S so as to extend laterally beyond the latter. Recesses 42may be formed in the upper Wall of the housing lil to receive the casters :tu and the housing may be secured to the bearing 39 by a wing bolt 43. When used in connection with carpet stretchers not provided with a block 38, the head 21 may be secured by the wing bolt 43 to a bearing block Ml, illustrated in Figures 2, 3, and 4, secured to the end of the pole 26. The inner margin of the block M is curved and bears against the inner surface of the housing il to relieve the wing bolt 43 of shearing stresses and to provide a bearing surface upon which theI housing 4| may turn. To facilitate movement of the carpet stretcher when the casters 4l) are not present, balls 45 are Secured in recess 46 to the upper surface of the housing 4l, as shown in Figure 5.

Preferably the head 2 includes a pad or surfacing of soft material 48 secured to the end surface of the housing di to provide a cushioned abutment to a wall surface or base board to avoid scratching or denting of the latter.

A plate 5t is secured tothe lower face oi" the housing ll! by bolts 5l, and carries a plurality of downwardly extending prongs 52 so arranged that prongs adjacent to the surfacing 'is are of lesser downward extension than prongs adjacent to the pole 25. This difference of downward extension could obviously be accompli-shed by shortening the prongs adjacent to the surfacing t3, but as it may be desirable to have all of the prongs capable of piercing a carpet to equal extents to avoid greater tearing stresses on one part of the carpet than on another, I prefer to form the plate 5b with a lower step 53 and an upper step 54 and to have all of the prongs 52 extend equally from their respective steps. In laying a carpet it is a common practice to piace a tacking strip on the licor along the wall or base board, as. shown at 55 in Figure 4, and to tack the edge of the carpet to the tacking stripbefore proceeding with the operation of stretching the carpet. The step 5ft is accordingly raised above the step 53 to approximately the height of a taclring strip so that the prongs carried .by the v step 5@ will normally pierce the portion of the carpet overlaying the tacking strip to the saine extent as the prongs carried by the step 53 pierce the carpet laid upon the iloor. rIhe stepped construction of the plate 55 prevents the plate itself from resting upon the carpet if a tacking strip of greater than normal height is used, which would cause the prongs of the step 53 to pierce the carpet to a lesser extent than the prongs of the step 51S.

To avoid scratching a oor or tearing the carpet padding often laid beneath a carpet, a guard plate 55 is adiustably secured to the housing il by bolts 5l. Because o the possibility that no taciring strip may be used, the guard plate 55 is disposed to regulate the effective length of the prongs 52 carried by the lower step 53, having slots 5S through which these prongs extend. The guard plate 55 is secured to the bolts 5l by screws 59 which are bottomed in end holes in the bolts 5l and may turn freely in the guard plate The bolts 51 are threaded in the plate 55 and extend upwardly through the lower wall of the housing el, terminating in heads il adapted to receive a tool by which the bolts 5l may be adjusted vertically. As herein illustrated, the heads @il may be slotted to receive a screw driver and the upper wall of the housing fil is pierced by holes 5I to permit access from. above to the heads 5K3 with a screw driver or similar tool. This construction permits an operator to adjust the guard plate 55 at any time, without having to raise the carpet stretcher from the carpet.

In Figure 9, I have illustrated a preferred form of the prong-carrying, carpet gripping head 29. rIhis head preferably comp-rises a plate S3 mounted on a rod 6l! which is slidab-le within the pole 25. Various forms of lever-actuated mechanism may be employed to cause extension of the head 2s relative to the pole 2t but the form. herein illustrated is simple and practical, and is shown by way of example. A lever 55 is pivotaily oonnected to the rod 54, as shown at 56, and a link. Si is pivotally connected to the lever and to a pawl 68 which is sldable in a groove 69 in the rod 64. The pawl 68 abuts the shoulder It formed by the :end .of the pole Y23 so that downward movement of the lever, as indicated by the arrow in Figure 1, causes the pawl to push against the shoulder and the rod 63 to slide outwardly from the pole Z5. It will be seen hereinafter that to retract thehead 2.9 Yfrom an extended position, it is necessary tolift the head tofree the prongs thereof from the carpet, and coincidentally with such 'lifting the lever 65 may be raised and the rod `Sli maybe pushed into thepole 2G to retract the head 29 to a .starting position for another stretching operation.

The plate 63 is provided with a plurality of prongs 12 which are preferably forwardly inclined, as shown in Figure 9. A guard plate f3 has slots ill through which a substantial number of the more centrally located prongs lil extend, and is adjustably secured to the plate to in substantially the same manner as that by which the guard plate 55 is secured to the housing Lil, hitherto described. Screws l5, turning freely in the guard plate 13 are bottomed in end holes in bolts 16 so as to be turned therewith and to cause the guard plate to move vertically with the bolts. Threaded 'bolt holes 'I1 for the bolts l5 extend to the upper surface of the plate 63, making the upper .ends of the bolts accessible from above. The upper ends of the bolts are adapted to receive a tool, such as a screw driver, in the manner shown in connection with the bolts 5l in 'Figure 6, so that the guard plate 'i3 may be adjusted to regulate the eifective length of the prongs '12, that is, the length to which the prongs may penetra-te a carpet, without it being necessary to invert the carpet stretcher.

The stay-tacker 3l, shown in detail in Figures 10 to 14, comprisesa plate 8U formed' with a central bridge portion 8l adapted to straddle the pole 26 and having laterally extending wings 82. To provide a close t on the'inner tube 34, which of course is of less diameter than the outer tube 33, a saddle 83, shown in Figures 13 and 14, may be employed, and may be removed when the staytacker is mounted on the outer tube v33. Various means of clamping the stay-tacker to the pole 26 may be used, but for rapidity in changing the position of the stay-taoker, I prefer the means illustrated in Figures 10, 11, and 13. The bridge portion Bl is provided with ears 54 on which handgrips are pivotally mounted. The upper portions, or handles, of the, grips 35 are urged apart by a compression spring 86, and the lower portions of the grips are provided with pegs 8l insertable in holes 88 in the bridge portion 3l and the saddle 83. The holes 88 are registerable with the holes 35 in either the outer tube 33 or the inner tube 3ft and the pegs 8l may extend into the holes 35 to clamp the stay-tacker to the pole 25 at any of the spaced positions dei'ined by any exteriorly exposed holes 35.

Individual plates 9U, each carrying a plurality of prongs 9|, are secured as by screws S2 (Figure 12) to the more central portions of the wings '82, leaving the extremities of the wings free. To provide a wider grip upon a carpet and to prevent lateral motion of the pole 26, additional plates 93 having offset portions forming brackets Sli, may be slipped onto the extremities of the wings 82 and secured thereto by Wing bolts S5. Prongs 9?, carried by the plates 93, are preferably inclined outwardly to provide better resistance to lateral movement.

Guard plates S3, provided with slotsY 9g for the accommodation of prongs 9|, are adjustably secured to the plates 90 in the same manner as heretofore described in connection with guard plates 56 and 13. Screws |00, turning freely in the guard plates 98 are bottomed in end holes in bolts so as to be turned therewith, and hold the guard plates in fixed vertical relation to the bolts. The bolts |0| are threadedin the plates 90 and have tool-receiving head portions extending upwardlyA inbolt holes |02 in the plate 80 so as to be exposed from above. Turning the bolts |0| by application of a suitable tool thereto, such as a screw driver applied to slots |03, will adjust the guard plates 98 to regulate the effective length of the prongs 9|.

A modified form of pole is illustrated in Figures 15 to 19, in which a pole |04 comprises an inner channel element adapted to slide telescopically within an outer channel element |06. The elements |05 and |06 are preferably formed so that they may be assembled only with their open sides in register, in which position they form an open double-walled channel. Such safeguarding against incorrect assembly may be accomplished by providing the channel elements with inwardly turned V-shaped webs |01 and with inwardly turned flanges |08 at right angles to the side walls. The flanges |08 also serve to restrict the inner element |05 to telescopic movement within the outer element |06. It will be understood that, although not herein shown, the bearing block 44 may have a shank suitably shaped to be secured within a channel-shaped element such as the element |05 and that the rod 64 may likewise have a portion shaped to fit slidably within a channel-shaped velement such as the element |06, and that the bridge 8| and saddle 83 of the stay-tacker 3| may be rectangular so as to fit upon rectangular channels.

The open channel form of the pole |04 permits the use of locking mechanism for holding the elements |05 and |06 at a selected degree of telescopic extension which has the advantage of being readily accessible and easily manipulated. Holes ||0 in the side walls of the inner channel element |05 may be brought to register with suitably spaced holes in the side walls of the outer channel element |06, and may be easily held in register by means of pegs ||2 extending laterally from the arms of a U-shaped spring I3 (see Figure The spring ||3 has a handle ||4 which extends upwardly between the flanges |08, and has a peg ||5 which may be inserted in registering holes ||6 in the webs of the channel elements |05 and |06. When the pegs ||2 are placed in the holes ||0 and they serve as pivots for the spring 3. and when thereafter the bight of the spring 3 is pressed down by means of the handle ||4 so that the peg I5 engages the holes IIS, the elements |05 and |06 are locked together at three points and the shearing stresses engendered by end pressure on the pole |04 is distributed to all three pegs, as shown in Figure 17. Cam plates are secured to the inner sides of the walls of the inner channel element |05 so as to engage the arms of the spring |3 and to compress the arms inwardly when the spring is raised pivotally about the pegs ||2. Initial upward movement of the spring H3 releases the peg ||5 from the holes H6, and continued upward movement ofthe spring, resulting in inward compression of the arms thereof, releases the pegs I2 from the holes of the outer channel element |06, as shown in Figure 18.

- The channel elements will then be unlocked, but

the spring ||3 will remain pivoted in the holes ||0. The cam plates preferably have shoulders ||0 which hold the spring I3 Within the channel of the pole |04 so that it may not be exposed to accidental over-compression which might release the pegs 2 from the holes ||0. The spring may, however, be compressed by insertion of the hand or of a wedge within the channel of the pole |04, to permit removal of the spring therefrom.

A modified form of spring lock is shown in Figure 19. Its pegs ||8 are carried on the ends of a U-shaped spring I9, each of the legs |20 provided with an offset portion |2| of such conguration that the portion of the U which interconnects its two legs is narrower than the portion defined by the outer ends of the legs. The spring I9 may be moved pivotally by reaching into the open channel; and when the narrow upper end is drawn upwards between the inner edges of the flanges at the upper edges of the channels, the wider portions of the U-shaped spring come into engagement with the edges of the inwardly extending flanges, causing the spring to be pressed and withdrawing the pegs ||8 from the holes in the outer channel without, however, withdrawing the pegs ||8 in the inner channel.

To operate the carpet stretcher as hitherto described, the operator adjusts the guard plates of the Wall-abutting head 2l, the head 2), and the stay-tacker 3|, according to the thickness of the carpet which is to be stretched, to permit suitable penetration of the prongs without endangering the floor or carpet pad. As heretofore described, this adjusting operation may be conducted with the carpet stretcher in its normal upright position and with the prongs directed downwardly towards the carpet, thus makin it easier to ascertain a suitable effective length of the prongs. The telescopically extensible pole 26 is adjusted so that the carpet stretcher will span a desired length of carpet. The head El is then placed against a wall and the prongs 52 are pressed into the carpet adjacent to the wall. The lever 65 is raised and the rod 04 is pushed into the pole 26 to retract the head 29. The prongs 'I2 of the head 29 are then pressed into the carpet and the lever 65 is lowered, causing advancement of the head 29 and stretching of the carpet between the prongs 52 and 12. The stay-tacker 3| may be used to weight the pole 26 prior to advancement of the head 29, and after such advancement it may be secured to the pole and the prongs 9| and 96 may be pressed into the carpet. The head 29 is then raised to release the prongs thereof from the carpet and to permit retraction of the head to obtain a new grip upon the carpet. Because of its position closer to the head 27, about which the carpet stretcher pivots when the head 2S is lifted, the stay-tacker will not disengage from the carpet but will hold the portion of the carpet between itself and the wall in stretched condition.

It will be seen that by reason of the prongs on the head 2l, the carpet stretcher is n ot dependent upon abutment against a wall in order to be able to stretch a carpet. Lengths of carpet beyond the spanning capacity of the pole 26 may be stretched between the two prongcarrying heads 2'| and 29, or carpets bordering on hearths or door sills which do not provide suitable resistances.

In Figures 20 to 23, I have illustrated a modified form of carpet stretcher which is particularly' if) suited to long carpets or to conditions where no ixed resistance such as awall is available. A pole |23 comprises a tube |24 containing a dowel |25. A second dowel |26, which may be slidably received within the tube |24, carries a padded head |21. A pad |28 is covered by a cover |29, the edges of which are secured as by tacks |39 to' a block |3|. The block ISI fits within a cup |32 and is secured thereto'by a bolt |33 and nut |34. The cup |32 has. a collar |35 which fits upon ,the dowel |25` and may be secured thereto by screws |36. The padded head |21 and dowel |26 are removable from the tube |24, the dowel vbeing retained therein by a friction button |31 and spring |38.

Upon the opposite end of the pole |23 irorn the padded head |21 there is mounted aprongcarrying head |40 which has acollar portion |4| fitting over the tube |24. A plate |42, bearing prongs |43 is fastened to the head |40 by bolts |44. A guard plate |45 has slots |46 through which the prongs .|43 extend, and is adjustably secured to the head |40 by preferably four bolts |41. As in the instances of the guard plates hitherto described, thek guard platel |45 is secured to the bolts |41 by screws |40v which may turn freely in the guard plate and are bottomed in end holes in the bolts |41. 4'lhe bolts |41 are threaded in the plate |42, and the bolt holes |49 for the more forwardly of the bolts and the two bolts at the sides of the head are continuedupwardly through the head |44 so as to expose the upper ends of the bolts. The bolt holes |50 of the more rearwardly bolts |41 continue through the collar portion |4|, and the dowel |25 is also pierced with holes |5| aligned with holes |50. Thus the upper ends of the bolts |41, which are adapted to receive a tool which may be a screw driver receivable in slots |52, are accessible from above and the guard plate |45 may be vertically adjusted to regulate the effective length of the prongs |43 by turning the bolts |41 with a suitable tool. The rearward bolts |41 also serve to help retain the head |40 upon the. pole |23.

To use this modied form of carpet stretcher, the operator tacks a portion of the carpet to the floor or to a tasking strip, engages the prongs |43 in the carpet, and presses or kicks against the padded head |21 with his knee.

I claim:

l. In a carpet stretcher, a telescopically extensible member, a prong-carrying head on each end of said extensible member, one of said heads being slidably mounted with respect to said member for movement in further extension thereof, lever means and linkage connecting said one head and said extensible member for causing extension of said one head relative to said extensible member, the other of said heads being pivotally mounted with respect to said extensible member and having an end surface adapted to abut a wall surface, and a pronged member adapted to be secured transversely to said extensible member at selected positions thereon.`

2. In a carpet stretcher, the construction set forth in claim l, in which said other head has prongs adjacent to said end surface of lesser downward extension than the remainder of the prongs of said other head, for engaging a carpet raised by a tacking strip.

3. In a carpet stretcher, the construction set forth in claim 1 in which said prong-carrying heads and said pronged member have guard strips for regulating the effective length of the prongs 10 carried by said heads and by said member, and bolts for vertically adjusting said guard strips accessible for adjustment from the upper sides of said heads and of said member.

4. In a carpet stretcher, the construction set forth in claim 1, in which said telescopically extensible member has holes in its telescopic elements registerable at selective degrees of extension of said member and peg means insertable in registered holes to hold said member at a selected degree of extension, and said pronged member has clamping means engageable with any of such holes exposed exteriorly of said extensible member.

5. In a carpet stretcher, the construction set forth in claim 1, in which said telescopically extensible member comprises inner and outer channel-shaped elements each provided with holes registerable with holes of the other at selective degrees of extension of said member, and a U- shaped spring adapted to fit within the inner of said channel-shaped elements and having pegs extending laterally from its arms and insertable in registered holes of said elements, said spring then pivoting on said pegs.

6. In a carpet stretcher, the construction set forth in claim 5, in which said inner channelshaped member has cams engageable with the arms or said spring for compressing said arms towards each other when said spring is swung upwardly about said pegs.

'1. In a carpet stretcher. the combination with an extensible member, a prong carrying head on one end of said extensible member and a block on the other end of said extensible member adapted for abutment against a wall surface, of a housing having a cavity therein within which said block is receivable to removably mount said housing thereupon, and aplurality of carpet-engaging prongs extending downwardly from the under surface of said housing.

8. In a carpet stretcher, a telescopically extensible member, a pressure exerting head carried thereby at each end thereof, carpet-engaging prongs extending downwardly from the under surface of one of said heads, said one head being movable longitudinally of said extensible member in further extension thereof, means mechanically interposed between said one head and said telescopic member for moving said one head with respect to said telescopic member to attain said further extension, and supplementary carpet-engaging means carried by said extensible member adjacent said head-moving means, said supplementary means being operable upon disengagement of said one heads prongs from carpet previously stretched by said stretcher, to retain tension in said carpet during such disengagement cf said one head from said carpet.

9. In a carpet stretcher, a telescopically ext-ensible member, a pressure exerting head carried thereby at each end thereof, carpet-engaging prongs extending downwardly from the under surface of one of said heads, said one head being movable longitudinally of said extensible member in further extension thereof, means mechanically interposed between said one head and said telescopic member for moving said one head with respect to said telescopic member to attain said further extension, and supplementary carpet-engaging means carried by said extensible member adjacent said head-moving means, said supplementary means being operable upcn disengagement of said one heads prongs from carpet previously stretched by said stretcher, to retain tension in said carpet during such disengagement of said one head from said carpet, and anti-buckling means comprising prongs carried by said supplementary carpet-engaging means and inclined downwardly and laterally therefrom into carpetengaging position to resist lateral movement of the associated portion of said extensible member with respect to said carpet.

10. In a carpet stretcher having two head members and a telescopically extensible member carrying one of said head members at each end thereof and having registerable holes in its inner and outer elements and locking means engageable with said holes to hold said extensible member in selected degrees of extension, a plate having a bridge portion adapted to overlie said extensible member transversely thereof and having holes registerable with the holes of said extensible member, clamping means inclusive of pegs engageable with registered holes in said plate and said extensible member for clamping said plate to said extensible member, and a plurality of prongs secured to said plate and adapted to engage a carpet to prevent relative movement of said carpet and said extensible member.

11. In a carpet stretcher, the construction set forth in claim l0, and a guard plate secured to said first-mentioned plate for regulating the effective length of said prongs.

12. In a carpet stretcher, the construction set forth in claim 10, and additional prong-carrying members securable to the end portions of said plate and having prongs laterally inclined so as to resist lateral movement of the associated portion of said extensible member.

13. In a carpet stretcher, the construction set forth in claim 10, and additional prongs carried by said plate and inclined laterally with respect thereto so as to resist lateral movement of the associated portion of said extensible member.

14. In a carpet stretcher, the combination with an extensible member, a prong-carrying head on one end of said extensible member arranged for sliding movement relative thereto in further extension thereof, and lever means for extending and retracting said prong-carrying head relatively to said extensible member, of a head secured to the other end of said extensible member and having an end face adapted to abut against a wall surface and a plurality of prongs in stepped arrangement so that those of said prongs adjacent to said end face extend downwardly to a lesser distance than the prongs adjacent to said extensible member, a vertically adjustable plate having apertures therein through which a portion of the prongs of greater downward extension protrude.

15. In a carpet stretcher, the combination with an extensible member, a prong-carrying head on one end of said extensible member arranged for l2 sliding movement relative thereto in further extension thereof, lever means for extending and retracting said prong-carrying head relatively to said extensible member, of ahead secured to the other end of said extensible member having a plurality of downwardly extending prongs in stepped arrangement so that the innermost of said prongs have greaterr downward extension than the outermost thereof, a guard plate having apertures therein through which said innermost prongs protrude, and means for adjusting said guard plate to alter the degree of protrusion of said innermost prongs.

16. In a carpet stretcher, the combination with an extensible member, a prong-carrying head on one end of said extensible member, and a block on the other end of said extensible member adapted for abutment against a wall surface, of a member adapted to be detachably secured to said block, a prong-carrying plate securable to the lower portion of said member having downwardly extending prongs arranged in two groups of greater and of lesser downward extension, and a guard plate adjustable vertically relative to said prong-carrying plate for regulating the penetration into a carpet of that group of Iprongs having greater downward extension.

17. In a carpet stretcher, the combination set forth in claim 16, in which said detachable member has an end surface of soft material adapted to abut a wall surface.

18. In a carpet stretcher having two head members adapted respectively to grip a carpet and to abut a resistance, an elongated member i holding said head members in spaced relation,

lever means acting on one of said head members to increase said spaced relation, and a pronged member adapted to be secured transversely to said elongated member at selected positions thereon whereby end thrust exerted upon said elongated member may be transmitted to a carpet at a position between said head members.

JESSE C. OWENS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 389,228 Knight Sept. 11, 1889 520,736 Hover May 29, 1894 834,535 Poirot Oct. 30, 1906 901,231 Eby Oct. 13, 1908 1,766,423 Bartlow June 24, 1930 2,015,227 Leopard Sept. 24, 1935 2,108,506 Owens Feb. 15, 1938 2,184,019 Owens Dec. 19, 1939 2,326,117 Bartlow Aug. 10, 1943 2,358,436 Bartlow Sept. 19, 1944 

